The Bet
by QueenRiley
Summary: RPM With the gossip mill running wild in the garage, the rangers make a bet they probably shouldn't have.


Scott knew better than to get involved in a pool match with Summer. She'd win every single time. So why he'd let her con him into a game, he wasn't sure. She won before he even took a shot. He just stood there, cue in hand, staring. A banging behind him shook him out of his reverie. Dillon was standing next to his car, had been for the past ten minutes in fact, and was now banging on the roof.

"C'mon, Ziggy, hurry up!" he yelled. Scott looked over at the stairs as Ziggy came charging down, every footfall clanging an echo around the garage. He was wearing tight black jeans, a dark green shirt, and a black vest. It wasn't too unusual a look for him, but he was a little more put together than normal. His hair had been brushed through and the curls were uniform instead of a tangled mess. His clothes were clean, pressed, and wrinkle free for a change. Scott realized with a start that Ziggy had actually primped and dressed up.

"Sorry, sorry! I couldn't find my shoes. One of them had somehow ended up in a pile of socks under Scott's bunk." Ziggy exclaimed, running over to the car. Dillon frowned, but it was soft, more caring than annoyance.

"Take a little longer next time, huh, Princess?" he said with a teasing smile. Ziggy rolled his eyes, but he smiled despite.

"Where are you guys going?" Scott called out as Ziggy climbed into the passenger seat of the Fury. Dillon glared at Scott.

"Out," he said, sliding into the driver's seat. Scott watched as Dillon revved the engine. He could see through the back windshield as Ziggy leaned over, a broad smile on his face as he spoke quickly about wherever they were going. Even Dillon was smiling. They sped out of the garage and out of sight. He felt Flynn's heavy hand clamp down on his shoulder.

"They are SO dating!" he exclaimed. Scott just laughed.

"It'd be nice if they'd actually admit it," he said. Flynn smirked.

"What are you talking about? They're not dating!" Summer said, leaning on her pool cue. Scott laughed again. He chanced a glance at Flynn and saw that familiar smirk now directed at Summer.

"They are, lass. There's no other explanation!" Summer frowned.

"I don't buy it. They're just friends." Scott and Flynn gave her a skeptical look. "Very very close friends," she amended. Scott could tell she wasn't entirely sure of it herself.

"Very very close friends that like to shag, I'd wager," Flynn challenged. Summer squared her shoulders.

"Care to take a bet on that, boys?" she asked confidently. Flynn smiled wide.

"I'm in," he said. Scott nodded along with him.

"In on what?" Gemma asked, emerging from the lab with Gem and Dr. K on her heels.

"A bet. They think Ziggy and Dillon are dating." Summer said, resetting the pool table.

"That's absurd. Dillon's not gay," Gem replied, scoffing at the idea. He took a seat at the kitchen counter and the others congregated around the pool table.

"And Ziggy is?" Summer asked.

"Ziggy totally is." Gem nodded emphatically.

"But he talks about women all the" Summer started. Gem cut her off.

"He doth protest too much."

"Maybe Dillon's bi," Gemma theorized.

"You don't have to be gay to enjoy a really good blowjob," Flynn said, looking wistful. Five pairs of eyes turned on him as one and just stared. He shifted uncomfortably.

"How do you know Ziggy gives good blowjobs?" Summer raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"Well he spent time in prison, didn't he?" Flynn answered, blushing. They all just blinked at him. Scott wasn't sure he really wanted to know if Flynn was speaking from experience or merely theorizing. He shook his head.

"Love is love, guys. Orientation doesn't matter. What gets me is why they won't just tell us!"

"I don't think they're dating, yet," Gemma said. "I mean, maybe they just don't realize it yet, anyway."

"On the contrary! I beg to differ with all of you," Dr. K spoke up. Scott had almost forgotten she was there with them, she'd been so quiet. "There is some unique emotion between the two, yes. That much is undeniable. However, I theorize they are both fully aware of it and merely choosing to ignore its existence. I do believe their physical relationship is formed out of a mutual need… stress relief and coping mechanism for one, payment for protection for the other."

"What?" Scott asked. She sighed.

"Well Flynn is correct. Ranger Green did spend some time in prison. Surely even he is cognizant enough to have picked up certain… life strategies… while incarcerated." Scott's jaw dropped. He shook his head. They were all over thinking this.

"Twenty bucks says they're dating," Flynn broke the silence, bringing the conversation back to the bet they initially set.

"With all the emotions that go with it," Scott amended.

"You're on. They're not dating, just very good friends." Summer held out her hand.

"Just friends," Gem joined her.

"With an unrequited crush on Ziggy's part," Gemma added. She joined Summer and her brother. Dr. K shook her head.

"Betting is a pointless exercise based on poor extrapolation of dubious facts and observations, but I put twenty down on friends with a mutually beneficial physical relationship." Scott blinked. "Friends with benefits," she clarified, rolling her eyes. He reached his hand out to shake. The bets were made.

* * *

They spent the next week trying to coax some kind of revelation out of Ziggy and Dillon. The roundabout methods they had tried just weren't working. Dillon never did more than grunt and Ziggy would go off on tangents about how wonderful prison life had been without ever confirming so much as a possibility of a seedy sexual underworld. It was infuriating and Scott would have asked outright if he thought he'd get a straight answer.

They'd gone out on their own, to some undisclosed location, three times since the bet was made. They would drive off and be gone for hours at a time. Sometimes they left happy and joking, others they left tense and antsy. They always came back smiling, though. In fact, that afternoon, right after a rough fight against another one of Venjix's bots, Dillon had grabbed Ziggy the minute the debriefing was over. He had practically thrown Ziggy in his car and taken off without a word to anybody else. They'd been gone maybe half an hour before they came roaring back in, Dillon looking significantly more relaxed. Scott wasn't sure if Ziggy's hair was really messier or if it was just his perception. With the perpetual tangle of near-curls on top of his head, it was really hard to tell. Ziggy was flushed, but then again, the temperature controls had been slightly off for the past week and it had been unusually warm. There really was no way of knowing for sure, not yet.

Scott slept fitfully that night. He was pulled roughly out of what little sleep he had been getting shortly after midnight. It was unusual for him to wake during one of Dillon's nightmares, but that night he was jolted awake. He lay quietly in his bunk, eyes wide and locked on the bottom of the bunk above him. He knew Flynn, a light sleeper, was wide awake. The room was quiet as Dillon, trying not to disturb them, snuck out and closed the door behind him. They could hear his footsteps echo down the walkway and the stairs.

He tried to go back to sleep but the room was so quiet. Even Ziggy was awake, his ever present sleep babble missing. After ten minutes, Ziggy jumped down from his top bunk and walked out the door. It was quiet again. He waited and waited, but he couldn't fall back to sleep in the silence and finally, curiosity getting the better of him, kicked the bunk above him.

"Oy! Quit it!" Flynn whispered loudly, his hand flailing blindly over the side of the bed.

"Are you awake?" Scott asked.

"Are you deaf, man? Yes, I'm awake." Flynn's accent was thick. It always was when he was tired.

"What do you think they're doing?" he asked. Flynn sighed and shifted above him.

"I don't think I want to know," he mumbled.

"It's been twenty minutes. Ziggy didn't come back. They're doing something down there." Scott kicked the bunk again and Flynn sat up.

"So go bloody well look for yerself! I'm tryin' ta sleep here!" A pillow launched over the side and whacked Scott on his head. He tossed it back at Flynn and crept to the door. He opened it as slowly as he could manage, probably more slowly than was strictly necessary, but he didn't want to risk being seen. He crept on his hands and knees over to the railing. He had a clear view of the garage below him. It was mostly dark, but there was enough light to see by.

Ziggy and Dillon were on the couch. Dillon was leaning his head against the back, his eyes shut tight. Ziggy was on his lap, head tucked down against Dillon's neck. Dillon's arms were wrapped around the other man, one scratching across the curve of his bare back and the other grasping at locks of hair. Ziggy had one hand clutching the back of the couch so tightly his knuckles were white, and the other was tucked down between them. Scott could see the muscles in his arm and across his shoulder rippling in a steady rhythm. While he couldn't see Ziggy's arm itself, he could tell Ziggy was squeezing and twisting, pumping it up and down. The back of the couch was facing Scott and was far enough away that he couldn't see much of what was going on. The garage was so quiet in the dead of night that he could hear just about everything though. Dillon was panting hard, trying to stifle moans, as Ziggy rutted against him, grinding his hips while the muscles in his arm flexed with every tug up and thrust down.

Scott, without looking away, motioned for Flynn to come see. He knew he shouldn't be watching, but this was confirmation if he ever saw it. He felt more than heard Flynn creep his way over. It took a minute, but Flynn finally sucked in a deep breath next to him.

"Are they?" Flynn asked, his voice barely audible even right next to Scott's ear. Scott nodded once and ducked lower. Neither moved, neither turned away. They couldn't stop watching.

Dillon began to buck up against Ziggy and then he threw his arms to the side, grabbing the couch pillows. He arched his back and raised his head, eyes shooting open. Ziggy sat up long enough to fix him with a smoldering gaze and then Dillon lost it. He clamped his mouth shut tight but a deep, stuttered groan escaped anyway and he threw his head back, eyes screwed tightly shut. Ziggy quickly put his head down and bit hard on Dillon's neck. He picked up the pace as Dillon's whole body jerked hard once, twice, three times in quick succession. He collapsed back into the couch, every muscle in his body suddenly very relaxed. He was taking in deep shuddering breaths. Ziggy shifted until he was sitting upright, his arm still moving between them. Dillon raised his head and locked eyes, bringing his right hand down to take over. Ziggy whimpered and his eyes rolled back as Dillon's arm moved in a new, faster rhythm. He bit his lip and tried to brace himself against Dillon's shoulder, moving in time with Dillon's arm. Within another minute, he collapsed against Dillon, shuddering. His whole body shook as he made little keening noises. Dillon held him tight, arm moving gently but quickly, as the shuddering slowed and then finally stopped. Ziggy remained curled against Dillon, breathing hard. One arm still trapped between them, Dillon moved his free hand lightly up Ziggy's back. He ghosted his fingers along the spine from the small of Ziggy's back right up to the nape of his neck, stopping just long enough to play with the fine hair that curled there.

"Twice in one day," Dillon mumbled. Scott wouldn't have heard if the rest of the garage hadn't been absolutely silent.

"Nu-uh. 'S after midnight. Doesn't count." Ziggy sat up and Dillon chuckled. He reached up and brushed the sweat soaked hair off Ziggy's face. Ziggy smiled lazily, still basking in the glow of orgasmic bliss. Dillon stroked one finger down Ziggy's cheek, collecting beads of sweat along the way.

"Love you," Dillon mumbled. Scott wasn't entirely sure he heard him right until Ziggy smiled.

"Love you more," he mouthed back soundlessly. Ziggy shifted so they were chest to chest and then leaned down to kiss Dillon deeply. It was lazy and familiar, slow and passionate. Scott heard Flynn back away then and, after watching the two men below hungrily claiming each other, followed.

"I'd say that's us won the bet, yeah?" Flynn asked, climbing into his bunk. Scott picked his way across the bedroom and collapsed into his own bed.

"Yeah, but the others won't take our word for it," he answered, yawning. Flynn shifted above him, the springs in the bed creaking. "They looked happy, at least."

"Aye, they did at that," Flynn replied before drifting off. Scott lay in bed for awhile after, listening for his other two roommates to come in. He was asleep before they ever made it back.

* * *

Scott tried not to notice the obvious bruises on both Dillon and Ziggy the following day. It was hard to not see them when he knew to look, though. He paid attention after that. They'd try to keep them low, but when you share a bedroom with three other people, you notice things.

The longer things went on without any resolution to their bet, the worse Scott felt. He could see it, now, when they thought they were alone. He could see it in their eyes. The way Ziggy looked at Dillon with wide, almost disbelieving eyes and unbearably endearing smiles. Dillon had his own clues. Dillon was softer around Ziggy. Dillon was gentle and protective. Even when he was frowning or brooding, if Ziggy would crack a joke, his face might not change, but his eyes would go warm and almost happy. They would touch sometimes; just little brushes here or there, pats on the back, teasing smacks or ruffling hair. While it wasn't any clearer for anybody else, based on what Scott and Flynn had seen that night, he knew what the emotion behind it was. And it made him feel guilty. It was wrong, betting on his friend's emotions like that. It had all been a game back when he could still consider it subjunctive history, back before he knew for sure, back when it could go any way. But now he knew and the realization of how badly the bet could go down, how meddling it seemed, made his stomach churn.

Three weeks went by before he couldn't handle it any longer. He had to do something about it or it would eat him up inside. He was a better man than that. He corned Flynn outside one afternoon. He had to talk to somebody about it and Flynn was the only other one who knew for sure. He checked to make sure nobody else was even close to within earshot before broaching the subject.

"I think we should call off the bet," he said. Flynn gaped at him.

"But we know we've won! Calling it off would be giving up," he replied.

"Just hear me out, okay? We won. They're totally into each other. And we know we won. But that just makes it worse. We're betting on our friends' happiness. They're our friends and we wagered money on whether they were happy together or not." Scott tucked his hands in his back pockets. Even talking about it was making his stomach heavy. Flynn rubbed the back of his head.

"Put it that way, yeah. I feel bad, now."

"So we back out?" Scott asked. Flynn frowned.

"We back out and they think they've won. We'd look like idiots and they never let us forget it," he said. Scott thought about it.

"What if we tell Ziggy and Dillon? Maybe we can still get out of this with their help." Flynn balked at the idea at first, but Scott eventually convinced him to his side. Coming clean really was the only way.

* * *

"You did WHAT?" Dillon yelled. He began to pace. Ziggy just leaned against the mirrored wall and glared, his lips pursed. His eyes were cold and Scott suddenly realized that maybe Ziggy wasn't so bad at the mafia business as he let on.

"We bet on you. If you two were dating. And we're really sorry, okay? We know it wasn't right." Scott felt very small at that moment. They'd set up a training session with Dillon and Ziggy under the pretense of teaching Ziggy their three very different fighting styles. Once alone in the training room, they ambushed the two young men and told them everything. Now Ziggy was staring daggers at them and Dillon was pacing in quiet fury.

"Damn straight it was wrong! You can't just DO that to people!" Dillon cried out. Ziggy was quiet. It was disturbing. Flynn looked sheepish.

"Look, we said we're sorry. But we can't just back out now," he said. Dillon stopped pacing and glared.

"And why not? Just tell them you want out. Tell them that it's not right to bet on your so-called friends."

"We'll look like idiots and they'll think they've won. They'll be insufferable, for all of us," Flynn mumbled, looking down at his hands.

"And what makes you so sure that YOU are right?" Dillon strode right up into Flynn's personal space. He made for an imposing figure.

"Well we are, aren't we?" Flynn looked up with a shrug. Dillon just glared, his nostrils flaring.

"Oh come on, you two are totally stupid for each other! And besides, we kind of saw you… on accident… on the couch one night… awhile ago." Scott replied. He tried to sound confident, but the more Dillon glared at him, the harder it was to keep the blush from rising. He hadn't meant to be watch, and he'd certainly never intended to tell them, but since they were confessing everything else he figured they might as well give the iron-clad evidence. Dillon looked ready to kill, but Ziggy, silent the whole time, suddenly burst out laughing. They all turned and stared while he tried to control himself. Every time he managed to regain composure, he'd slide into another fit of giggles.

"I'm sorry, I can't help it!" he gasped. "Stupid for each other. He's right, Dillon." He finally got out. Dillon ground his teeth.

"You could have just told us, y'know. You didn't have to hide it," Scott said.

"You could have just asked us," Dillon said. Scott shook his head. He was pretty sure if they'd asked outright they wouldn't have gotten a straight answer. Ziggy pushed off the wall, finally composed. He slipped his hand into Dillon's and laced their fingers together. It was an awkward move, but Scott figured they'd spent so long hiding it, to have other people around they could be affectionate in front of was going to take some getting used to. For everybody involved.

"So what do you need us to do?" Ziggy asked with a smile. Flynn grinned and clapped his hands together. He licked his lips and winked at them.

"Right, so here's the plan…"

* * *

Two days later, they'd sorted all the details and figured out exactly what to do. It had taken a little prep work, some shopping, and hopefully some good luck, but they were pretty sure this would end all the gossip. They'd agreed to take the money from the bet and split it four ways. It was only fair compensation, after all.

They waited for a dinner when everybody sat down to eat together. It didn't happen every night, but it was only a matter of time before they were all in the same room. Immediately after everyone was done eating, Scott grabbed Ziggy and pushed him towards the kitchen.

"Hang tight guys. We've got stuff for ice cream sundaes all around!" he called out. As a group, they expressed gratitude, and Scott winked at Ziggy as they pulled out the syrup, whipped cream, and cherries. In no time the two had thrown together eight bowls of ice cream doused in chocolate sauce, topped with whipped cream, and with cherries dripping red tracks down the cream. Ziggy had even put three in Dr. K's bowl, knowing how much she liked sweets.

Just as planned, Ziggy made a big show of eating his. Dillon shifted noticeably in his chair, also as planned, though Scott was pretty sure he wasn't acting. Even Summer was staring when she finished hers. Ziggy used his finger to scoop some of the whipped cream off the top. He sucked it slowly into his mouth, eyes fluttering closed while he savoured the taste. He slowly sucked it in and out of his mouth until it was clean. He occasionally made little noises while he enjoyed his ice cream and nobody could take their eyes off him. It was bordering on obscene. The others had long since finished and pushed their bowls to the side when Ziggy was scraping the bottom of his for the last of the chocolate. Everybody was staring as he moaned low in his throat and licked the spoon. His tongue snaked expertly around the head of the spoon, right down the stem. He sucked it deep into his mouth and then pulled it out slowly. Dillon made a keening noise off to Scott's left, but he couldn't look away from the show Ziggy was putting on. He'd never known ice cream could be so erotic.

"That was excellent," he said, standing with bowl in hand. Nobody else moved as Ziggy took as many bowls as he could carry to the kitchen. Dillon grabbed his bowl, as planned, and followed. Six pair of eyes followed them, mostly out of habit than anything else. More than one set of eyes was glazed over, pulses quickened by the display.

"Hey, Zig, you've uh, you've got some chocolate, just there." Dillon said, pointing at the corner of Ziggy's mouth. Ziggy reached up and wiped at his face, but Dillon frowned. "Here, let me," he said, reaching for Ziggy. Instead of using his thumb to wipe off the imaginary spot of chocolate, he wrapped his hand around to the back of Ziggy's head and grasped at the hair at the base of his neck. He grabbed the front of Ziggy's pants with his free hand and tugged him forward. Ziggy met him halfway in an eager, passionate kiss. He wrapped his arms around Dillon's waist and deepened the kiss. It was an obviously familiar kiss, very apparent that it wasn't their first. Flynn and Scott both smiled. Scott couldn't help but to chuckle a little. Summer's jaw nearly hit the table as they got a good view of Dillon's tongue sliding into Ziggy's mouth as if it belonged there. Gem and Gemma both whooped and hollered, broad smiles stretching across their faces.

Ziggy and Dillon separated and Ziggy stepped back nonchalantly. They both acted as if nothing unusual had happened.

"Did you get it?" he asked. Dillon looked closely and wiped at the corner of Ziggy's mouth.

"Yeah, yeah I think I got it." Ziggy tugged at his pants and walked back to the table, plopping down in his seat. Flynn cleared his throat and held out his hand. Summer grumbled as she dug into her pockets, pulling out two twenties. Dr. K frowned, but handed over her money as well. Even Gem and Gemma handed over their cash, though neither seemed terribly upset to have lost the bet. Scott and Flynn promptly divided their winnings in half. Flynn passed half of his over to Ziggy while Dillon walked over and grabbed his stack from Scott. Summer opened her mouth to protest, but Dillon glared.

"It's not nice to bet on your friends," he said. She blushed and looked down.

"It's not a fair win if you goad them into it," Dr. K frowned. Ziggy smiled smugly and stood, pushing Dillon toward the stairs leading up to the bedrooms.

"Oh it's no act. Now, it's been fun but, uh, after that little public display of erotic food, I feel the need to go lock myself in my bedroom with my boyfriend for awhile. So, if you'll excuse us." Ziggy winked and disappeared up the stairs. Scott burst out laughing when they heard an audible click as the door was locked behind them.


End file.
